India records more than 90,000 new Covid-19 cases

A health worker collects a swab sample at a coronavirus testing center, in Baljeet Nagar, on September 5. Sanchit Khanna/Hindustan Times via Getty Images

India reported 90,632 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday -- the highest single-day rise in infections since the pandemic hit the country.

The country’s total number of recorded cases now stands at 4,113,811, including 70,626 deaths, according to India’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

India is on track to become the country with the second highest number of coronavirus cases. On Saturday, Brazil's Health Ministry reported 4,123,000 total cases, just 9,189 more than India.

According to Health Ministry data, India currently has 862,320 active cases of coronavirus while 3,180,865 patients have recovered after undergoing medical supervision.

In India, not all patients require a test to be considered recovered. Patients with mild and moderate symptoms are considered no longer active after 10 days of symptom onset if they meet certain conditions, and a test to confirm that they no longer have the virus is not required. However, severe cases can only be discharged after one negative coronavirus test.

India has tested 48,831,145 samples for coronavirus until Saturday, the ministry says.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews speaks to the media during a news conference on September 6, in Melbourne, Australia. Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

The Australian city of Melbourne will remain on a strict "Stage 4" lockdown until at least September 28, despite the daily average number of new Covid-19 cases dropping into double-digits.

Stage 4 restrictions were due to expire on September 14, however the government of Premier Daniel Andrews said today that the city would not be in a safe enough position to do so.

Melbourne has suffered through the toughest restrictions felt by Australians through the Covid-19 pandemic, as the city has felt the brunt of a brutal second wave of coronavirus.

The cases: At least 19,542 cases and 666 deaths have been recorded in the state of Victoria, the vast majority coming from the capital Melbourne in July and August. New South Wales, the next worst-hit Australian state, has recorded 4,114 cases and 52 deaths, mostly in April. 

What the Stage 4 restrictions mean: They include the closure of all non-essential businesses, a curfew from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. local time each day and restrictions on who may go outside and for how long.

Some minor changes will come into effect as of Sunday, September 13: The curfew will be pushed back to 9 p.m. and outdoor socializing with one other person will be allowed, Andrews said.

What to watch for: Further restrictions will be removed gradually from September 28 should the 14-day average for new cases per day be between 30 and 50. That includes public gatherings increased to a maximum of five people, some businesses reopened and some students allowed back to class.

If the 14-day average in new daily cases is below five as of October 26, the curfew will be lifted and residents will not need a valid reason to leave their home. 

Saturday saw 63 new cases of Covid-19 in Victoria and five deaths added to the total.

US states should be prepared to distribute a coronavirus vaccine by November 1 "just in case" one is ready, US Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has asked public health officials in the states to prepare to distribute a coronavirus vaccine by late October or early November.

More than 6.2 million people have been infected in the US since the pandemic began, and 188,501 people have died, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Adams said the guidance is "just in case" a vaccine is approved by that time, reiterating comments by public health officials that such an event is possible but not probable.

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Dr. Anthony Fauci said Friday that he's not sure what President Donald Trump meant when he said earlier that evening that the United States is "rounding the corner" on the coronavirus pandemic.

"I'm not sure what he means," Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CNN's Jim Acosta on "The Situation Room."

"There are certain states that are actually doing well in the sense of that the case numbers are coming down." However, Fauci continued, experts remain concerned by a number of states, including Montana, Michigan, Minnesota and the Dakotas, that are starting to see an uptick in the percentage of coronavirus tests coming back positive -- an indication of spread of the virus.

The exchange marked another example of a top scientist and a member of the White House coronavirus task force publicly disputing the President's claims about the virus, a dynamic that has played out nearly since the start of the pandemic.

"By the way, we are rounding the corner," Trump said during a news briefing at the White House. "We are rounding the corner on the virus."

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A medical worker screens for Covid-19 at a testing facility on August 26, in Seoul, South Korea. Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images

South Korea reported 168 new Covid-19 cases Saturday, its lowest number since August 15, according to the country's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).

The country recorded a surge in infections last month, partly driven by a cluster from Seoul’s Sarang-jeil Church, which was linked to 1,156 confirmed cases. Another 510 cases were linked to Seoul’s anti-government rallies, which were held on August 15.

The spike in new cases was especially high in the greater Seoul area. Last week, South Korea reported a peak of over 400 daily cases.

On August 28 the government announced stricter social distancing measures for the greater Seoul area, which took effect from August 30. 

The measures include permitting only takeout services from franchise cafes, banning eat-in services between 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. local time at all restaurants and bakeries, and shuttering gyms and indoor sporting facilities. 

On Friday, the strict social distancing measures for the greater Seoul area were extended until September 13.

South Korea's national tally of confirmed cases stands at 21,010, and the death toll increased to 333 as two new deaths were added, according to a news release by the KCDC Saturday.